New York Police Will Start Patrolling Facebook and Twitter

You thought it was bad when you got a friend request for your mom. But in retrospect, stakes were low -- at worst, you maybe had an awkward conversation about those keg-stand pictures. Now, things are more serious: The cops are on Facebook. And Twitter. And all your social media.

The NYPD has created a new unit to catch people plotting crimes on social media as well as those bragging about their unlawful acts afterward.

The Daily Newsreports today that the new head of the Juvenile Justice Unit, Kevin O'Connor, has pioneered the police department's use of social media. As part of the Manhattan North gang unit he put together critical information about shootings by watching who bragged about the incidents later on social media.